


The Friendly Dragon

by vivvav



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series, 龍が如く | Ryuu ga Gotoku | Yakuza (Video Games)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-12
Updated: 2017-07-12
Packaged: 2018-12-01 03:52:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11478042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivvav/pseuds/vivvav
Summary: A young Makoto Niijima gets lost in the streets of Tokyo, separated from her father. Just when it seems like she'll never get home, a very large and stoic man lends a helping hand.





	The Friendly Dragon

**Author's Note:**

> Credit for the idea for this story goes to my friend Hureno. Once she said it, I liked it too much not to write it. It is not canon with my other P5 fics.

Times had been dim for the Niijima family since the death of Yuriko Niijima. The stress of being a police detective and taking care of his two daughters by himself had caused the once tall, trim, and strapping Sadao Niijima to become worn out. He gained more than a few pounds, and his once-chestnut-brown hair had gone grey, although he supposed he should have counted himself lucky that it wasn’t falling out altogether. His oldest daughter Sae, who wasn’t even in middle school yet, had taken it upon herself to watch over her younger sister Makoto while Sadao was at work. Sae had always been a somewhat serious child, but lately it seemed like she was completely bereft of joy. And Makoto, who’d always been a bit fussy, had completely withdrawn into herself. Before her mother’s death, she regularly had these moments when she’d unexpectedly pop out of her shell, showing a passionate and curious side. She also had a tendency to get very excited over any perceived injustices, and more than once Sadao had caught her looking at his police badge in awe. It seemed like Makoto had something of a fledgling detective’s spirit in her, and while Sadao wasn’t thrilled with the idea of his little girl getting into his line of work, nowadays he’d give anything to see that side of her again. It was no good for a little girl about to start Kindergarten to keep to herself so much.

Which is why when an opportunity to reintroduce some happiness into their lives came, Sadao was more than eager to take it. He overheard Sae on the phone. Apparently some friends of hers were going on a 3-day trip to some beach during the summer and wanted her to come along. Sae refused, saying she had to watch after her sister, but Sadao told her to go, and took a few personal days. This is just what the family needed. Sae needed to be with people her own age and not have to worry about any responsibilities for a bit, and Sadao could spend some quality time with Makoto and maybe get a bit of her old self to come out again.

Step one was a success. Sadao surprised Makoto with a gift: A blue shirt featuring her favorite mascot character, Buchimaru-Kun. He wasn’t really sure if the little creature was supposed to be a panda or a dalmatian, but Makoto was crazy about him. For the first time in a while, the little girl got a big smile on her face, and she excitedly put the shirt on. Now it was time for step two…

Sadao had to stop himself from laughing as he and Makoto walked down the street in Shibuya. They had gotten ice cream, and Makoto was holding her cone out away from her face with both hands, bending over and craning her neck forward to lick at it. It was a very strange sight, seeing a 4-year-old child bent at a ninety degree angle making the act of eating ice cream harder for herself, but if he laughed at her, he feared she’d withdraw into herself again.

“Makoto,” he asked, “why are you eating your ice cream like that?”

“Huh?” Makoto stood up straight and looked up at her father with those red eyes that ran through the Niijima family bloodline. “Like what, Papa?”

“Well, most people eat ice cream like this.” Sadao held his cone up to his face and licked it normally. “But you’re eating it like this.” Sadao leaned forward and mimicked Makoto’s actions. For a man his age, trying to bend over that much was profusely uncomfortable. He imagined it was less painful for Makoto, but he still couldn’t see it being comfortable for her.

“I don’t wanna get ice cream on Buchimaru-Kun!” Makoto whined.

“But isn’t it harder to eat it that way?”

“But what if it starts getting all melty!? I don’t wanna ruin my new shirt…” Makoto looked down at the blue shirt sadly.

“But if you eat it that way, it will take longer, and then your ice cream’s more likely to get all melty, isn’t it?”

Makoto stared at her ice cream inquisitively. Sadao could practically see the internal conflict going on in her head as she tried to weigh the risk vs. reward of the two ice cream-eating methods. He hid his smile behind his ice cream cone as he observed his daughter’s intense deliberation. He tried to remember if Sae had been like this at Makoto’s age. Was Makoto a strange child, or would it be more accurate to say that all children were strange in their own unique way? Whichever it was, Sadao only hoped that the spirit he was trying to coax out of his daughter wouldn’t be broken by the expectations of society. Even at this young age, Sadao could tell that Makoto was intelligent and diligent, not unlike her older sister. But whereas Sae’s serious nature was practically tailor-made for a Japanese success story (or at least it would be if she were a boy and not expected to be married and pregnant in her early 20s), he felt like Makoto had more of an individual streak hidden deep down inside. It was hard to describe why, but Sadao felt like his younger daughter was destined for great things, and those kinds of people were often fought every step of the way. Sometimes, Sadao thought that this country was breeding a population that had more love for tradition than for their fellow human beings.

Still, those kinds of concerns were years away. For now, at least, Makoto was an innocent child. She didn’t have to worry about the soul-crushing machine that society could be, or her career, or her academic performance, or her future family. Today was one of those precious few days where she wouldn’t be worrying about her future, and Sadao was happy to spend it with her. It was a beautiful sunny day, the temperature was pleasant, and for the first time in a while, all felt right with the world.

And then he heard it.

First there was a screech.

Then there was a loud crash.

Then there were some screams.

Some kind of commotion was going on just around the street corner. Sadao grabbed Makoto’s hand and sped up his pace, pulling her along. She didn’t say anything, she just tried to keep pace with her father, her little legs moving quickly while she made sure not to drop her ice cream. Sadao saw a crashed car with the front wrapped around a lamp post. Immediately, his sense of duty took over. True, he wasn’t a paramedic, but as far as he could tell there were no other emergency services around, so he could at least try and take control of the situation. He tossed his ice cream in a nearby trash can and knelt down, putting his hands on Makoto’s shoulders.

“Makoto, Papa has to go check and make sure nobody’s hurt, ok?”

“Ok, Papa.”

“Now, there might be broken glass over there, and I don’t want you getting near it, so I’m going to have to leave you here. I want you to promise me that you won’t go anywhere and that you won’t talk to any strangers, ok? I’ll be back in a few minutes, and I need you to remain in this exact spot, got it?”

“Yes, Papa.”

“Good girl.” Sadao gave Makoto a reassuring smile and stood up. “I’ll be right back, I promise.” Sadao ran over to the crashed car. There was a large crowd gathering around it. This was the reason he always kept his badge on him, even when he was off duty. He pulled it out of his pocket and started waving it in the air.

“Everybody step back! Police! Clear the way!”

The civilians moved out of the way as Sadao yelled. He made his way to the driver’s side of the car and saw a single person inside, a young man with a bloody gash across his forehead. The driver’s side window was shattered and there was glass all over the place.

“Sir, I’m with the police! Are you conscious!? Can you hear me!?”

“Not so loud!” The driver slowly turned his head towards Sadao. “I’m a little shaken up, but I’m… Ah…” The man raised his hand to his forehead. “Shit, am I bleeding? Stupid tire.”

Sadao looked down and around. Indeed, one of the man’s front tires was busted. He heard sirens and saw an ambulance truck approaching.

“Just wait here a moment, sir. The paramedics are arriving now.”

“Sure thing, Officer.”

As the ambulance stopped, Sadao ran over to them holding up his badge.

“What’s the situation, Detective?” one of the paramedics asked.

“Just the driver in the car. The crash was caused by a sudden popped tire. He’s got some cuts on his forehead but seems completely lucid. Can you handle the rest?”

“Where are you going?” the paramedic asked.

“I’m supposed to be off duty. I’m out here with my daughter. I need to get back to her.”

“Say no more.” The paramedic nodded. “We’ll take it from here, Detective.”

“Thank you.” Sadao looked back to where he left Makoto. He couldn’t see her past the crowd of adults that had gathered around the scene. He pushed through the crowd, hoping that as he got closer he’d be able to make out that familiar brown braided hairband. As he got closer and closer to the trash can where he’d thrown out his ice cream, he couldn’t see Makoto. When he got there, the only thing he could see was an abandoned ice cream cone on the ground, the frozen treat melted on the sidewalk.

“Makoto!?” Sadao looked around. He couldn’t see his daughter anywhere. “MAKOTO!?” He turned to an old woman in a pink sweater standing close by and grabbed her by the shoulder. “Pardon me Madame, but have you seen a little girl with brown hair around here?”

“A little girl? What?” The old woman looked at Sadao through thick coke-bottle glasses. She looked around for a moment, then stared down at her feet and gasped. “My purse! It’s gone!” The old woman spotted the police badge in Sadao’s hand and looked up at him. “Officer, I believe my purse has been snatched!”

“Madame, I’m sorry, but I have far bigger concerns right now!” Sadao’s heart started racing and his head started spinning. “My daughter is missing!”

* * *

“Good girl.”

Makoto watched wide-eyed as her father ran off towards the accident. She was always amazed by him. He was a police detective! He stopped bad guys and helped people! He seemed like he’d been really tired lately, but seeing him rush into action like that proved he was just as cool as ever. She completely forgot the ice cream in her hands, just watching her father disappear into the crowd as he went off to do his job. Once she couldn’t see him anymore, she looked around.

There were a lot of people standing around and staring. Makoto didn’t get it. It wasn’t like all of these people were also police officers, so what were they doing here? They weren’t trying to help or anything either, they were just taking up space, making it harder for people like her father that did want to help to do their jobs. Sae always said that people should either solve problems or get out of the way. And it seemed a little mean, but Sae was one of the smartest people Makoto knew, so she must have been right. After all, what could all these people actually do? If somebody had to be pulled out of a car, it’s not like this old lady standing in front of Makoto would be strong enough to do it. She couldn’t even hold on to her little pink purse. It was just sitting on the ground. She had let go of it while she was watching the accident. Everybody was just blocking up the sidewalk. Nobody was moving at all.

Well, actually, there was one guy moving. He looked to be about her father’s age and had a mean, unshaven face. Everything about him was grumpy, and he was headed away from the accident and in Makoto’s general direction. Makoto watched him as he dipped down and just grabbed the old lady’s purse from the ground and kept walking. Makoto couldn’t believe it! This man had just committed a crime in broad daylight and everybody else was too distracted to notice! She tried calling out to the old woman in front of her to let her know what had just happened, but she couldn’t hear Makoto over all the chatter going on.

Well, Makoto wasn’t just going to stand by and do nothing. She was a Niijima, and Niijimas always did the right thing! She was gonna stop that bad guy and get that old lady her purse back, just like her papa would! She dropped her ice cream and ran after the thief.

Makoto had trouble keeping up. The thief wasn’t running, but he was speed walking, and she could only run so fast. Still, she managed to follow the bad guy for a few blocks. He just kind of shoved his way past anybody he came across, except for one tall man in a white suit smoking by an alleyway. The thief gently moved around the man and ran into the alleyway. Makoto ran after him, looking up at the tall man as she passed him. He also had a scary face, and he just looked down at her and cocked an eyebrow as he kept smoking.

The thief had stopped in the alley, opening the purse.

“Alright, let’s see how much the old bag kept in this old bag.” The thief laughed at his own joke. Hearing him laugh about his crime made Makoto really mad, and she walked a bit into the alley and pointed her finger at him.

“Hold it, you thief!”

“Huh?” The thief turned around and looked down at Makoto. “What do you want, kid!?”

“You stole that from an old lady! You have to give it back!”

“Get lost!” the thief yelled back.

“Nuh-uh! This is a citizen’s arrest!” Makoto took a couple steps towards the thief. “You’re coming with me to give that old lady her purse back, and then you’re going to the police!”

“Are you serious?” The thief started laughing. “Just who the hell do you think you are, kid?”

“I’m Makoto Niijima, and I'm arresting you just like my papa would!”

“‘Niijima’?” The thief’s laughter suddenly stopped. “Wait, is your old man Sadao Niijima, the cop?”

“That’s right!” Makoto put her hands on her hips. “Now it’s time for you to go to jail!”

“Oh man, is this some kinda divine intervention or what!?" The thief started laughing again, and he got a wicked grin on his face. “Your old man busted me for a bunch of convenience store robberies I did twenty years ago! Ruined a good thing I had going! But now this opportunity for revenge has just dropped into my lap!”

The thief’s grin got scarier as he started slowly walking towards Makoto. It began to dawn on her that this man might be dangerous, and she started stepping back.

“What are you doing!?” she yelled.

“Just stay right there, kid!”

“Don’t come any closer!” Makoto held up her fists. “If you do, I’ll have to use my Fist of Justice on you!”

“You’re a laugh riot!” The thief was looming right over Makoto now. “Do you really think I’m gonna be scared of some fist thing!?”

And then a large fist drove itself into the thief’s face.

* * *

Kiryu didn’t really know what he was doing outside of Kamurocho. Nishiki, ever obsessed with being stylish and trendy, had convinced him that he should explore the rest of Tokyo, see what the city had to offer beyond the yakuza’s usual stomping grounds. And so, reluctantly, he decided to wander over to Shibuya, where tons of people went to do stuff other than get their rocks off. It certainly wasn’t the kind of pleasure district Kiryu was used to, but it was nice enough, he guessed. Still, there was one problem.

_“I’ve got no idea what I’m supposed to be doing now that I’m here.”_

Kiryu grunted and leaned against a brick wall, using the lighter he’d borrowed from Nishiki to light a cigarette. He took a drag from it and exhaled, remembering Nishiki’s words.

> _“You can’t take your day off in Kamurocho, bro! Between the gang activity and all the real estate stuff you do, you gotta go somewhere that you don’t have any business!”_

Well, that might’ve been true, but Kiryu really felt like he had no business being in Shibuya. Maybe he’d just make his way back to Kamurocho anyway and just hit one of the dance clubs or something. So far he just felt like he’d been wasting his afternoon.

_“Well, after I finish this smoke, I’ll head back.”_

Kiryu took another drag and some sketchy guy ran past him. He was a bit older than Kiryu, at least ten years, probably fifteen. The way he was clutching a pink purse was suspicious, but this wasn’t Kiryu’s turf, so he didn’t really care what lame petty crimes scum got up to around here. The man looked at Kiryu and a twinge of fear crossed his face, so he probably wasn’t anything special. He seemed like some washed-up thug who’d never made it big and just did small crap to get by. The thief ran into an alley right by where Kiryu was smoking, but he didn’t really feel like he had a reason to care.

More interesting was the little girl who followed him a few seconds later. She looked like she couldn’t have been older than five, and she had this odd braid in her brown hair that seemed a little too perfect and orderly, like it was artificial or something. She also had this determined look in her eyes that he’d seen more than once on the faces of some hardened thugs ready to kill somebody.

_“Wonder what that’s about. Could she be that guy’s daughter? If so, she must have some mom, because she doesn’t have the same chickenshit attitude that guy had.”_

Well, it was none of Kiryu’s business. Maybe that guy had stolen a purse to have enough money to feed that little girl. It was kind of a shame that he was indoctrinating his kid into a life of crime so early, but seeing as how he’d joined the yakuza to be like Kazama, he felt like it’d be hypocritical to lecture the man. He just continued smoking.

A minute later, he heard the little girl’s voice yelling from the alley.

“What are you doing!?”

_“Huh? That kid sounds scared.”_

“Just stay right there, kid!”

Kiryu couldn’t help himself. He poked his head around the wall and saw the man advancing creepily towards the little girl.

_“Crap, he’s not her dad!”_

“Don’t come any closer!” The little girl was walking backwards, approaching the entrance of the alley, but still out of sight enough for most people not to notice what was going on. “If you do, I’ll have to use my Fist of Justice on you!”

“You’re a laugh riot!” The man looked like he was about to hurt the kid. Kiryu took his cigarette out of his mouth, tossed it to the ground, and ran into the alley. “Do you really think I’m gonna be scared of some fist thing!?”

While the man was still distracted by the little girl, Kiryu charged, punching him square in the face. The man fell backwards onto his ass and Kiryu stepped between him and the little girl, his fists clenched.

“Son of a bitch!” The man looked up at Kiryu. “What the fuck are you doing!?”

“Just what are you planning on doing to this little girl!?” Kiryu asked.

“None of your business, pal! Get lost!”

“I’m going to give you one chance to walk away. I don’t care what you do after that, but I’m not letting you hurt this kid.”

“You think because you’re a big guy you’re some kinda hero?” The man stood up, letting go of the pink purse. He pulled a knife out of his pocket. “You should’ve just minded your own business, you piece of shit!”

Kiryu rolled his eyes. He was sick of Bacchus being continually right about somebody trying to stick a knife between his ribs. Thankfully, the old man had taught him a way to deal with it. Kiryu kept his cool as the man lunged at him with the knife. Kiryu sidestepped the stabbing attempt, grabbed his arm with both hands, and brought the arm down on his knee, breaking it. Kiryu punched the man in his face, sprawling him out on his back. He figured that’d be enough, but this creep was a glutton for punishment. He rolled over onto his stomach and started trying to get up with his one good arm. Kiryu bent over, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him up a little, using his free hand to punch him in the face again. He stood over the man and waited a moment to see if he’d move again. He didn’t. He was out cold.

Kiryu turned around to check out the little girl. To his surprise, she was looking up at him with her eyes wide in astonishment, a small smile on her face.

_“This is going to be a weird day, isn’t it?”_

Well, he couldn’t just abandon the kid now. He looked down at her.

“Are you okay, kid?”

“Yes. Thank you, mister!” The little girl bowed to Kiryu in appreciation.

“I’m no ‘mister’. My name’s Kazuma Kiryu.”

“Oh, ok. Thank you, Kazuma Kiryu-San!” Makoto looked up at Kiryu, still smiling. “My name’s Makoto Niijima!”

“You can just call me ‘Kiryu’, Makoto.”

“Ok, Kiryu-San!”

“You shouldn’t follow strange men into alleys, you know. You could’ve gotten hurt.” Kiryu grunted. “Where are your folks?”

“Oh no!” Makoto’s expression changed, as if she was finally realizing how serious the situation was. “Papa! He told me not to go anywhere, but I saw that bad guy and everyone else was letting him get away!”

“Maybe he’s waiting for you” Kiryu said. “Where did you chase this bad guy from?”

“Um…” Makoto turned around and looked at the alley’s entrance for a moment. She turned back to Kiryu, her eyes watering. “I don’t know!”

“Hey, come on, don’t cry.” Kiryu knelt down to get closer to Makoto’s eye level. “I’ll help you find your dad, ok?”

“You will?” Makoto sniffled and rubbed her eyes.

“I promise.” Kiryu held out his pinky to Makoto.

“Ok!” Makoto smiled and wrapped her pinky around Kiryu’s, at least as much as her tiny finger could. “And if we don’t find him, you have to swallow a thousand needles, right?”

“That’s right.” Kiryu nodded stoically. It wasn’t exactly the first time he’d wound up helping some random kid, but he still felt a little weird whenever he ended up doing things like this. Still, it wasn’t like his normal habit of getting involved in strangers’ problems. There was no way he’d feel good about leaving this little girl all on her own.

Makoto ran over to the pink purse and picked it up.

“What are you doing?” Kiryu asked.

“That bad guy stole this from an old lady!” Makoto turned around and held the purse up to Kiryu. “We gotta get it back to her!”

“I mean, if we run into her, I guess we can return it.” Kiryu took the bag on instinct and slung it over his left shoulder. “But that’s really more of a job for the cops.”

“Papa’s a cop!” Makoto proclaimed proudly. “He’s a detective!”

“Really?”

“Uh-huh!”

_“A cop’s daughter. This could be trouble.”_ Kiryu scratched his chin. _“Then again, Tachibana has kept the police off my back lately, and even if something goes wrong, maybe Kikuchi can vouch for me.”_

“Alright, let’s go.”

“But what about the bad guy!?” Makoto pointed to the unconscious man. “He has to face justice!”

“We can’t drag him along with us.” Kiryu looked at his deserving victim. “Besides, I think he’s learned his lesson.”

“You really think so?” Makoto looked up at Kiryu uncertain.

“I do.” Kiryu headed towards the street. “Come on, let’s find your dad.”

Makoto followed behind Kiryu, both of them stopping at the entrance of the alley.

_“This is the same way I was facing while I was having a smoke.”_ Kiryu turned his head to the right. _“And that’s the direction that Makoto and that guy came from. Maybe if we head that way she’ll remember where her dad is.”_

Kiryu looked down at Makoto to see her picking up his discarded cigarette from the ground.

“Hey! You shouldn’t be touching stuff like that!”

“But it’s litter!” Makoto protested. “It’s not supposed to be on the ground!”

“Yeah, it’s mine. Give it to me. Little kids shouldn’t be touching cigarettes.”

“Kiryu-San, you can’t do that!” Makoto glared at Kiryu. “Littering is bad! You don’t wanna be a bad guy!”

_“She really is a cop’s kid.”_

“You’re right. I’m sorry.” Kiryu maintained his usual poker face. He suspected that if this little girl knew what he did with most of his time she would not approve. “Give it to me and I’ll throw it out properly.”

“You better!” Makoto put the cigarette butt in Kiryu’s hand. He put it in his suit pocket to dispose of later and let his hand hang back down. He felt Makoto grabbing his hand. He looked down and saw she was smiling at him again.

Kiryu escorted Makoto back the way she came. He got a lot of bizarre looks along the way. He was used to stares, but these were of a completely different nature. He suspected that seeing a large, thuggish man like himself with a pink purse slung over one shoulder holding hands with a small child was an unusual sight for most passerby. Eventually, Kiryu and Makoto found the site of the car crash. By now the crowd had dispersed and the vehicle was gone. Makoto’s dad was nowhere to be found.

_“This is no good.”_

“Papa’s not here!”

Kiryu looked down to see Makoto’s eyes watering again.

“He must’ve got mad because I left when I wasn’t supposed to!”

“Hey, don’t think like that.” Kiryu gently tightened his grip around Makoto’s hand. “I bet he’s looking for you right now. He’s going to be very happy when he sees you again.”

“Then where is he!?“

_“Maybe I can just take her to her home. But then again, her old man’s probably still out there searching for her. Maybe I should take her to a police station. He’s a cop. I bet they know how to reach him.”_

“I think I know.”

* * *

“…every man you’ve got available! Beat cops, SWAT teams, meter maids, everyone!”

A frantic Sadao was hovering over the desk of the captain’s office of the Shibuya Police Station.

“Detective, calm yourself” the flustered police captain pleaded. “You know we cannot devote those kinds of resources to a single missing persons case. I understand how you must be feeling-“

“YOU COULD NEVER KNOW HOW THIS FEELS!” Sadao slammed his fist on the desk. “I was watching her, but I left! I put duty before my family! I’ve already lost her mother! If anything happens to Makoto because of my actions, I’ll never-“

“Sir!” The desk sergeant burst into the room. “Makoto Niijima is here!”

“Excellent!” The captain got a relieved smile on his face. “See, Detective Niijima? Everything’s-“

“MAKOTOOOOOO!” Sadao charged out of the room.

Running faster than he ever had in his life, Sadao made it to the front lobby of the police station. Makoto was standing next to some tall man in a white suit in front of the front desk. She turned towards Sadao and smiled.

“Papa!”

“MAKOTO!” Sadao swept down and picked up his daughter in a hug. “Are you ok!?”

“I’m fine, Papa!”

“What happened!?” Sadao, not putting Makoto down, held her out in front of his face. “Where did you go!?”

“There was a bad guy and-“

“A bad guy!? Who!?” Sadao noticed Kiryu for the first time and glared at him. “Was it him!? What did you do to my daughter, you son of a-“

“So…” Kiryu cut off Sadao, staring at him awkwardly. He held up the pink purse with one hand. “I also found this stolen purse. I think maybe you can return it to the owner.”

“Papa!” Makoto poked her father in the cheek. “Kiryu-San’s not the bad guy! He saved me from the bad guy!”

“Saved you? What?”

“Makoto chased a purse-snatcher” Kiryu said. “He looked like he was going to do something bad to her. I stopped him and brought her here.”

“He was amazing!” Makoto threw out a punch into the air. “He has a Fist of Justice, just like you, Papa!”

“I see!” Sadao put Makoto down and turned to Kiryu, bowing to him, his head going down past his knees despite how painful it was to contort his body like that. “Thank you very much for rescuing my daughter! I am sorry for any inconvenience it may have caused you!”

“It was no problem. I wasn’t doing anything anyway.” Kiryu just crossed his arms. “Just make sure to let other people handle the emergencies next time you’re out with your kid.”

“Of course!” Sadao rose and took out his badge, showing it to Kiryu. “I am Detective Sadao Niijima of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. If there is any way I can ever repay you, please don’t hesitate to ask, Mr…?”

“Kazuma Kiryu.”

“Very well. Kiryu-Sa- Wait…” Sadao’s nostrils flared. “Kazuma Kiryu? The yakuza enforcer!?”

“Ex-yakuza” Kiryu said. “I work for Tachibana Real Estate now.” Kiryu reached into his pocket and handed Sadao a business card. “If you are ever looking to start a business in Kamurocho, give me a call.”

“I see…” Sadao analyzed the card and put it in his pocket. “Thank you again, Kiryu-San.” 

“So…” Kiryu pointed to the bag in his hand. “Who do I talk to about this?”

“Oh, the desk sergeant will help you.” Sadao turned to Makoto. “It has been a very long day. I think it’s time for us to go home, Makoto.”

“Ok, Papa!” Makoto looked up at Kiryu. “Bye, Kiryu-San!”

“So long.” Kiryu gave Makoto a slight smile and wave.

Sadao took Makoto’s hand and headed for the door. As they exited the station, Makoto spoke up.

“Papa?”

“Yes?”

“What’s a ‘yakuza’?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“Because you called Kiryu-San one, so that must mean it’s something good, right?”

“Well, um…”

“Do you think I could be a yakuza when I grow up?”

And just when Sadao thought this day couldn’t get any more difficult.

**Author's Note:**

> So yeah, this is kind of a time-displaced version of Yakuza Zero since it's the only game in the series I've played.


End file.
